Douglas Kearney (born 1974) is an American poet, performer, and librettist. Kearney grew up in Altadena, California. His work has appeared in journals and magazines including Beloit Poetry Journal, Poetry, Callaloo, The Iowa Review, Boston Review, Hyperallergic, and Brooklyn Rail. In 2012, his and Anne LeBaron's opera Crescent City premiered and received widespread praise. He is an associate professor at the University of Minnesota.
Kearney attended Howard University as an undergraduate. He graduated from California Institute of the Arts, with an MFA (2004).
Kearney has received multiple notable fellowships, including the Cave Canem Fellowship (2000-02), Bread Loaf Writer's Conference Fellowship (2004), Callaloo Creative Writer's Workshop Fellowship (2004-05), and Returning Fellowship at the Idyllwild Summer Arts Poetry Workshop (2007).
In 2007, the Poetry Society of America named Kearney a Notable New American Poet. The following year, he was part of the National Poetry Series. Kearney wrote the libretto for George Lewis's opera The Comet, which was named as one of two finalists for the 2025 Pulitzer Prize in Music.